Charlotte Horton

Professional Background

I am currently a primary school teacher in year 3 at one of the longest-established not-for-profit Primary schools in Qatar, which has provided children with an outstanding education through the British Curriculum. At the end of this academic year, I will be returning to the UK to continue working in education. Before moving to the Middle East, I was working in a junior school in the heart of Chesterfield. I am also a trained sports massage therapist, and will be re-starting this on my return, and have treated numerous professional cricketers. Alongside these two professions, I am also a qualified cricket coach with experience of coaching numerous children and adults from all backgrounds and abilities.

I have a wealth of experience of working with a variety of cultures and backgrounds due to my professions and feel that this is a huge positive for being a Trustee.

Why did you become a Trustee?

I believe that my experience in organising and marketing events, including gaining sponsorship and buy-in from the local business community, can be a real asset to the plans of the Foundation. I am confident that I can I became a Trustee as I wanted to share my personal and professional experiences with the Derbyshire Cricket Foundation. After 15 years of being in the county cricket setup, as a senior player and captain, I feel I have many different experiences and a vast knowledge to share with others. I also played in the DCCL for many years, which has also given me a very interesting perspective to speak from.

My background as a teacher, who has worked in two very different socio-economic areas, has given me many experiences varying from cultural sensitives to barriers to learning, and I feel that this knowledge will be vital in my role as a Trustee.

How do you believe that you can help the Derbyshire Cricket Foundation to achieve its aims and objectives?

With my various qualifications, my playing and coaching background and teaching experience, I can bring a wealth of experience to the Foundation as well as trying to improve the lives of young children in Derbyshire. I am a firm believer in all humans from any walk of life to be able to share the same experiences, and cricket is the perfect game for this.

Any other information you would like to share?

I have played cricket my whole life and have a huge love for the game. I have played senior county cricket from the age of 15 through to 30, which was a brilliant experience and I was very fortunate to travel and play all around the UK. I was on the first intake of the Derbyshire academy, which raised a few eyebrows being the only female. From that, I went onto to represent my country in the U21’s European Championships as well as spend a winter playing for Western Australia. I also captained Derbyshire senior XI in the women’s County Championship. In one year, I scored the highest individual score for a female in the County and International calendar for that year, earning me the Walter Lawrence Trophy- which was a huge honour. I have been involved with two local cricket clubs and their committees for many years, as Club Welfare Officer, coach, player and first aider, helping to form women and girls sections as well as being a part of the first intake of clubs for Chance 2 Shine.